740.0011 European War 1939/37283/6: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Kennedy)
1202. Personal for the Ambassador. The following message is sent by the President to the former naval person in reply to the message contained in your 1645, June 14, 3 a.m.
“I am very much impressed by your message, and I am grateful to you for giving me so frankly the account of the meeting at Tours yesterday.
The magnificent courage and determination shown by the British and French Governments and by the British and French soldiers have never been exceeded.
You realize, as I hope Prime Minister Reynaud realizes, that we are doing our utmost in the United States to furnish all of the matériel and supplies which can possibly be released to the Allied Governments. At the same time, I believe you will likewise realize that, while our efforts will be exerted towards making available an ever increasing amount of matériel and supplies, a certain amount of time must pass before our efforts in this sense can be successful to the full extent desired.
As I asked Ambassador Kennedy last night to inform you, my message of yesterday’s date addressed to the French Prime Minister was in no sense intended to commit and did not commit this Government to military participation in support of the Allied governments. [Page 255] You well know that there is of course no authority under our Constitution except in the Congress to make any commitment of this nature. As Ambassador Kennedy also informed you, when I sent the message I had very much in mind the question of the French fleet and its disposition for future use. I regret that I am unable to agree to your request that my message be published, since I believe it to be imperative that there be avoided any possible misunderstanding with regard to the facts set forth above.
I have asked the Congress as a first step to appropriate fifty million dollars for the immediate furnishing of food and clothing to civilian refugees in France, and the Senate yesterday unanimously approved this recommendation.
I appreciate fully the significance and weight of the considerations set forth in your message.
As naval people you and I fully appreciate the vital strength of the fleet in being and command of the seas means in the long run the saving of democracy and the recovery of those suffering temporary reverses.
It seems logical to assume that in any war if an armistice is asked for, it becomes almost impossible thereafter to avoid inclusion of a fleet in the terms discussed, especially if such fleet is still under the control of the government seeking the armistice. On the other hand, if a general seeks an armistice for his land forces, he does not control or include the disposition of naval forces. Roosevelt.”